Taiwan-based motor scooter, motorcycle and ATV manufacturer Kymco has taken to Paris to launch Ionex Commercial, a turnkey electric scooter solution aimed at driving a global shift towards electric-powered vehicles for consumer and commercial purposes. 

Chairman Allen Ko presented his company’s latest service on the eve of the Paris Motor Show 2018, the biennial event taking place in the French capital to exhibit the latest innovations in the motor industry.

The presentation took place at the Salle Wagram in the centre of Paris, a venue that, in the late 19th century, hosted one of the first ever bicycle and motor shows in the world. It followed the launch earlier this summer of Kymco’s first range of Ionex electric-powered scooters.

While the vehicles were initially released on the market for consumers, the Taiwanese manufacturer has now decided to commercialise them as part of an all-encompassing platform to help companies and local governments to switch to electric vehicles.

The newly-launched Ionex Commercial service will provide companies with multiple types of battery-swappable electric scooters, together with a range of turnkey battery charging stations.

A crucial impact on the environment

Speaking at the launch event, chairman Allen Ko said the move was driven by the presence of around 150 million scooters worldwide, five million of which are used for commercial purposes. Travelling on average seven times the distance of their consumer counterparts, they represent 20% of total energy consumption.

“This is an inflection point for businesses and governments to make a big impact in modern transportation,” said Ko, highlighting the need for small and large enterprises to convert to electric.

He concluded: “Unlike consumer vehicles, oftentimes the procurement of entire fleets of commercial vehicles is managed by just a few business decision makers. Hence, a conversion of even a small number of businesses to ‘go electric’ has the potential to make a big impact on the environment”.

Paving the way to new commercial opportunities

Kymco plans to employ its Iconex Commercial scooters for four different types of enterprise: petroleum companies, logistics and retail companies, ride-sharing startups, and city governments that manage their public transportation systems.

Electric has great potential in all four fields. According to Kymco, petroleum companies are major players when it comes to fuelling a much-awaited shift towards electric, while retail enterprises like Deliveroo and Amazon could benefit significantly from using battery-powered vehicles to transport their products.

The rising popularity of ride-sharing start-ups could also be pivotal in the debate, as environment-friendly solutions are backed by both companies and consumers. Lastly, local governments could be interested in building a new transportation network based on electric vehicles.

An all-encompassing service

The Taiwanese manufacturer has come up with a range of solutions that could fit each of these fields. But the most interesting feature is that as part of every solution Kymco will not only provide the scooters but also removable batteries and a charging station, as well as a number of business- and fleet-specific features. These include usage reporting, maintenance management, AI analytics, energy station management and payment systems for ride-sharing companies.

“What is desperately needed is a dependable, one-stop provider to assemble an all-encompassing array of capabilities to support the electric transition,” said  Ko. “And therefore, Ionex Commercial is created to provide a total solution to empower and enable all businesses and governments to go electric.”